Investment Strategy
The investment objective of Berenberg Absolute Return European Equities is to achieve long-term capital growth that outperforms the benchmark €STR TR over a medium to long-term time horizon. The main driver is the underlying above-average and sustainable earnings growth of the selected companies on a long basis, in addition the portfolio management shorts structurally vulnerable and deteriorating companies. The selected companies are headquartered in Europe, but often operate globally. The decisive criteria for the business models of the long positions are high entry barriers, end markets with structural growth and excellent management teams. The short positions are selected on the basis of structural decline, competitive environment and valuation.
- Growth-oriented long/short strategy
- Concentrated portfolio of approx. 40-50 long positions and 30-40 short positions
- All cap approach, i.e. exploiting investment opportunities across all market segments
- Active approach, i.e. index weights have no influence on individual stock selection
Learn more about our investment philosophy in equity fund management
Further details on the opportunities and risks of this fund can be found in the sales prospectus.
Indexed performance
Performance in 12-month periods
Currencies
Sectors
Countries
Asset classes
Top Holdings
Monthly market comment
The S&P 500 recorded a new all-time high almost every day at the beginning of July, led by Big Tech. However, the weaker than expected CPI print then led to a rotation. Long: The rotation on the stock market led to selling pressure on well-performing Novo Nordisk shares. ASML shares also fell last month. However, strong figures and an optimistic outlook helped the Swedish Addtech to make significant gains. Short: The general uncertainty in the luxury sector led to a sell-off in a French luxury supplier. A mixed drinks manufacturer also came under pressure in the wake of profit warnings from alcohol producers such as Diageo. This benefited our short positions. Transactions: We opened short positions in a German airline, a French electrical retailer and an Austrian manufacturer of building materials as well as a long position in the British industrial conglomerate Diploma. In return, we closed our long positions in DSV and Hugo Boss as well as our short positions in a German consumer goods producer and a Swedish mobile phone company.
Portfolio Management
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Ralf Walter
Ralf Walter has been a Portfolio Manager at Berenberg since July 2021. He started his career in Equity Portfolio Management in 1998 at ADIG Investment GmbH in the German Small and Mid Caps Team and at Commerz Asset Managers in German and European Small Caps. Before joining Berenberg, he worked for 12 years in Alternative Equity Strategies at Allianz Global Investors. In the past, he successfully managed long-only portfolios as well as market-neutral long-short strategies (Allianz Discovery Germany Strategy). Ralf Walter studied at the University of Hohenheim and holds a degree in Economics. He is CFA Charterholder.
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Matthias Born
Matthias Born has been CIO Equities since 2017 and Head of Investments of Wealth and Asset Management since 2019. He started his career in 2001 at Allianz Global Investors (AGI), where he managed portfolios for European Small Caps, European growth stocks and German equities from 2002 to 2017. In his 16 years at AGI, he has built two very successful equity franchises and was responsible for client assets in the double-digit billions. Matthias Born has an excellent track record over two decades and received several awards for his outstanding and consistent performance. He studied at the University of Wuerzburg and holds a degree in Business Administration.
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Oliver Fritz
Oliver Fritz has been a Portfolio Manager at Berenberg since July 2017. Before joining Berenberg, Oliver Fritz worked in the Securities Division of Goldman Sachs, covering German-speaking equity and multi-asset clients. He started his career as a Sell-Side Sales at Mainfirst Bank. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics from Maastricht University and a Master's degree in Finance and Management from St. Andrews University.
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Justus Schirmacher
Justus Schirmacher has been a Portfolio Manager at Berenberg since January 2019. He started his career at Goldman Sachs in 2014 as an equity analyst in the European Autos Team. Before joining Berenberg, Justus Schirmacher worked in the GS SUSTAIN team. Here, the focus was on identifying cross-sector companies with successful and sustainable business models that have strong competitive advantages and benefit from structural growth. Justus Schirmacher studied history at the University of Cambridge.
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Johann Abrahams
Johann Abrahams joined Berenberg as a Portfolio Manager in January 2020. Previously, he completed the Berenberg International Graduate Program with assignments in Sell-Side Equity Research, Equity sales, ECM, Syndicate, Quantitative and Discretionary Asset Management. Johann Abrahams holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Mannheim, a Master in Finance and Economics from the London School of Economics and is a CFA Charterholder.
Consideration of ESG Elements
Identifying companies and business models that will be successful in the long term is the basis for good investment decisions. Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors are key factors in decision making and are therefore integral
components of the investment process.